Innovation doesn’t solely come from analysis labs; generally it’s sparked by bringing the best individuals collectively at precisely the best second.
That is the thought behind The Influence Circle, a curated community the place corporates, startups, traders, and policymakers collaborate to deal with main societal and industrial challenges. In recent times, it has turn out to be a key companion of the European Innovation Council’s Company Partnership Programme (EIC CPP), serving to join Europe’s prime innovators with giant corporates for impactful business collaborations.
On the coronary heart of this effort is Mats Reas, who has helped channel the facility of Tomorrowland – an enormous music pageant recognized for creating significant human connections at a rare scale – into a brand new type of assembly floor, the place corporates and startups spark concepts, pilot options, and construct long-term innovation partnerships.
On this interview, we dive into how The Influence Circle’s mannequin accelerates company–startup collaboration, why its partnership with the EIC CPP has been so efficient, and what got here out of the co-hosted EIC Multi-Company Discovery Day this 12 months. We additionally discover the upcoming 2026 Circles centered on Mobility, Client Items, and Building, and the way new corporates can formally become involved.
So Mats, welcome! Most individuals know Tomorrowland as one of many world’s largest music festivals, however far fewer learn about its innovation ecosystem. In a single sentence every, how would you describe Love Tomorrow and Influence Circle in your personal phrases?
Love Tomorrow Summit is a thought management pageant organised on the grounds of Tomorrowland.
The Influence Circle is Europe’s unique community the place pioneering corporates with an open innovation tradition and daring startups join, joined by a curated group of visionary traders and policymakers to increase scale and momentum. In summer time, this group of shiny minds comes collectively on the most important 3-day occasion going down at and across the Love Tomorrow Summit.
How did The Influence Circle evolve right into a platform for startups, corporates, and sustainability-driven innovation, and what are a few of your largest successes with this format?
Organising a mass occasion like Tomorrowland with greater than 200 nationalities is very similar to constructing a brief metropolis. Most of the challenges we face are in parallel with broader societal or ecological challenges, and so over time, we’ve realized that open innovation is essential find efficient and sturdy options.
Most significantly, the Influence Circle desires that can assist you as an organization to interact with the innovation challenges you’re dealing with. The first focus is on the cleantech, digital, well being and way of life industries.
If and when related, we’ll add a number of the challenges we will convey to the desk, so we will make a distinction collectively. On this means, we consider we will create significant affect and generate actual financial worth. And why not have some enjoyable whereas doing so?
As an skilled group builder and occasion organiser, we consider now we have the accountability and the distinctive skill to convey individuals collectively. We’re satisfied that, in partnership with main firms, we will form a path towards scalable affect and have fun shared success!
Influence Circle curates “Circles” the place corporates meet startups. What impressed you to create this format, and why is it so efficient?
We consider that uniting a number of firms in circles round shared objectives creates fertile floor for optimum cross-pollination. By integrating disruptive startups and scaleups, the strongest concepts acquire room to win, whereas inside buy-in will increase by the involvement of company specialists. Usually, adopting exterior applied sciences additionally delivers a greater enterprise case than constructing them internally.
From the company perspective, what makes collaborating in a Circle beneficial, and the way can it assist them discover innovation alternatives?
Along with the above, past connecting firms to change finest practices, we additionally organise focused workshops round particular innovation themes. In these workshops, we convey collectively company specialists with essentially the most related startups for his or her challenges. This format has been a fantastic success and considerably strengthens inside buy-in inside the firms. The casual and open ambiance definitely contributes to that success.
This 12 months, you partnered with the EIC Corporate Partnership Programme as a part of your wider Influence Circle 2025 occasion. For the EIC’s Multi-Company Discovery Day, the EIC introduced 40 startups, and also you noticed corporates P&G, Coca-Cola, and AB Inbev group up. Might you inform us in regards to the outcomes of this occasion?
It’s a bit early to share the ultimate outcomes. The varied firms that participated final summer time are actively implementing their consumer venturing processes as we communicate, and we anticipate the outcomes to turn out to be clear within the coming months. First testimonials, nevertheless, are remarkably constructive: 25-35% of the startups they met throughout The Influence Circle are already actively participating with them to construct a collaboration.
It is a pure and logical results of the intensive preparation main as much as the occasion, along with the EIC and its official suppliers, Dealflow and Hi there Tomorrow. If you happen to companion with The Influence Circle, we will likely be working intently over a interval of 4–6 months main as much as the summer time occasion: defining challenges, scouting startups, growing skilled workshops, making ready pitching competitions, and rather more. Due to the truth that the Influence Circle is an invite-only occasion, we will make sure the relevance of all of the individuals and maximise the worth of the three days spent collectively.
For 2026, you’re planning three themed Circles with the EIC: Mobility, Client Items, and Building. What alternatives do you see for brand spanking new company companions, and how much partnerships do you hope will come out of the occasion?
The first focus is on the cleantech, digital, well being, and way of life industries. We selected this positioning with giant organisations to collaborate round applied sciences that deal with society’s most urgent challenges head-on. We firmly consider within the energy of economies of scale and within the constructive affect that may be achieved by participating main firms by renewed networks and dealing towards scalable outcomes.
For corporates interested in making use of for the following co-hosted EIC Multi-Company Discovery Day and Circle at Influence Circle 2026, how can they become involved and apply formally?
For any questions, firms can contact our group through Bart Deweer, our Partnerships Supervisor, at [email protected]. You will discover our web site here, which will likely be absolutely up to date within the coming months.
